STATE-RUN Philippine International Trading Corp. (PITC) has approved a total budget of P7.45 billion for the importation of additional 300,000 metric tons (MT) of rice to boost the country’s stocks of the staple for the year.

In its latest Bulletin Board signed by lawyer Mark Brian Dela Cruz, vice president of International Trading Services Group, PITC said the rice importation will undergo a government-to-government (G2G) tender with the governments of rice exporting countries such as Thailand and Vietnam.